JapanesePod101.com Blog

Recently, I moved to Japan for a few months to experience an internship abroad and improve my Japanese skills. In the US, I had taken four semesters of Japanese and felt the need to improve before entering my third year. I thought the easiest solution would be moving to Japan for the summer and forcing myself into total immersion. When I arrived I was surprised by how much I could get around with english and how timid I was about using the Japanese I had learned for the past two years. I realized that I was never going to progress with my skills unless I actively studied and forced myself to use what I had learned. This is where JapanesePod101 came in. I've been following the lesson plan that they gave me and it's been really... Show more

Hi Listeners, Do you know what the top 6 Japanese fairy tales are? Reading short stories in Japanese is a fun way to learn the Japanese language and culture. Check out the 6 Japanese fairy tale stories below and learn must-know folk story words and phrases in Japanese! 1. Top 6 Japanese Fairy Tales 1. Momotarō, the Peach Boy The Japanese title is 桃太郎 (ももたろう; Momotarō). Born from a peach and raised by an old couple, Momotaro grows into a strong boy and starts fighting evil creatures. He is a symbol of bravery and humility. 2. The Crane of Gratitude The Japanese title is 鶴の恩返し (つるのおんがえし; Tsuru no on-gaeshi). An old man frees a crane and later takes in a young woman. Behind closed doors, she turns into a crane and... Show more

Your Learning, Streamlined – The New Lesson Interface Your learning is about to get a whole lot easier. More than ever, learners are choosing mobile as the platform to study . Mobile has always been a part of our DNA. We began our life on your iPod, and have remained by your side ever since. In our 11th year, we’re returning to our roots as a way to learn on-the-go. How? With a brand-new lesson interface just for you. Hint: It will launch in beta later this month! If you want to secure access to this brand new upgrade, take advantage of the upcoming All Access Pass Sale! Click Here to Get 25% OFF All Subscriptions! (example taken from JapanesePod101.com) It’s built from the ground-up to be a great experience on... Show more

Have you ever returned to JapanesePod101 lessons you’ve completed? Accessing a lesson once is enough to learn more Japanese. But to master what you’ve learned, to understand Japanese the second you hear it, to read with just a quick glance, and to speak smoothly, without thinking... you need to review. In this blog post, you’ll learn the 5 review tactics and learning tools that will truly sharpen your Japanese (all of which I’ve been able to resources for on JapanesePod101.com). Create Your Free Lifetime Account and Start Learning the whole Japanese Language from the Beginning! 1. Listen to lines over and over again! One of the best ways to learn Japanese (or any language) is to listen to native speakers over and over again... Show more

Hi Listener, Want to speak more Japanese in 2017? You need exposure to native Japanese conversation from day 1. You need a native Japanese speaker to explain it all – the words, the grammar, and cultural nuances. And you get all of that in every single JapanesePod101 lesson. In fact, we’re starting up a brand new season just in time for the New Year! Starting January 2nd, 2017, we’ll be publishing brand new seasons of Audio and Video Lessons to get you mastering Japanese the fast, fun and easy way! Want to know what you can expect? Here’s JapanesePod101’s Lesson Schedule: Monday: - Advanced - Advanced Audio Blog - Advanced - Japanese Business Course: Customs, Culture and Language Tuesday: - Video Series -... Show more

Every Japanese learner will have these fears – “I’m not good enough yet.” “I don’t think I’m making any progress.” “What if I never reach my goals?” Japanese learning fears – we all get them from time to time. What are yours? And are they worth being scared of? In this blog post, we’re killing the top 4 Japanese learning fears – 1) what are the fears learners tend to have the most and 2) how you can overcome them! Here are the top 4 language learning fears according to our users: 1. “I’m not good enough to start speaking yet.” Do you feel like you’re not good enough to start speaking yet? It’s a pretty common fear or misconception that most learners have. Here’s how you overcome it: The best way to get good at speaking... Show more

Howdy people, my name is Thomas. I’m a blogger and huge Japanese enthusiast. Today I’m going to review www.JapanesePod101.com and give you guys a 100% honest opinion on it. I am not being paid or otherwise compensated for this, and all opinions are my own. Anyone who knows me will tell you I’m brutally honest and blunt, so I won’t pull punches in a review. That said, enjoy. My first impression of JapanesePod101.com was that it looked a lot like what I had come to expect from language learning sites, from Rosetta Stone to Duolingo, I knew the drill and the layout of the main page was the same, bare-bones info page that I always see when I go to a site with a landing page that tries to get you to sign up right away. By comparison,... Show more

If you are in Japan for business or travel, or meeting you Japanese friend’s family in your own country, we are sure you would love to impress your Japanese hosts with your Japanese language skills. You want to introduce yourself, say hello and learn how to say nice to meet you in Japanese. But you have heard that it is difficult and a mistake can cause great confusion or trouble. Don’t worry! Here we bring you some useful tips for that successful first meeting for all Japanese beginners. You'll learn formal and informal Japanese phrases in this blog post. Discover the list of Top 10 Lines to Introduce Yourself in Japanese 1. My name is . こんにちは。わたしは です。 Konnichi wa. Watashi wa desu. "Hello. My name is ." ... Show more

〒 - Postal symbol, preceding postal code 107-0052 - Postal code, composed of 7 numbers 東京都 - Prefecture (県, ken), with the exception of Tokyo (都, to), Hokkaido (道, do) and Osaka/Kyoto (府, fu) 港区 - Municipality, city (市, shi), village (村, mura) or ward (区, ku). Here it is Minato ward. 赤坂 - Area. Here it is Akasaka. 3丁目4-4 - City district (丁目, chome), city block (番地, banchi), bldg/house number (号, go) ジョン シナ - Recipient’s name. In Japan the last name precedes the first name and is often followed by a honorific suffix like San (さん) or Sama (様), corresponding to Mr. or Ms. Click here to learn how to send out a Japanese postcard with our fun FREE video! P.S. Win a personal postcard all the way from Japan! Just click the link... Show more

Do you remember holding your first Game Boy? Do you remember the “Golden Age” of Japanese video games? I bet it was the reason to start learning Japanese in the first place for some of us. And you are here reading this article, so you probably have a keen interest in video games! If you are learning Japanese and you do like video games, this is perfect. By knowing how to read Hiragana and Katakana, and with a bit of foundation in Japanese grammar, I have the pleasure to announce that you unlocked a new achievement: Playing video games to practice Japanese! After a long day of work or school, sitting down at your desk with an other textbook might be the last thing you want to do. It is a way more fun to use our entertaining audio... Show more